Where to Eat Fondue in Calgary

Warm up with some cheese, chocolate or salted caramel fondue at one of these eight Calgary restaurants.

By Alana Willerton

February 14, 2018

Photograph courtesy of Monki Bistro

There's never a bad time for fondue, but the cold winter months are particularly perfect for this Swiss dish. In its most classic form, cheese is melted in a fondue pot and long forks are used to spear and dip small pieces of food like bread, covering it in a glorious coating of warm cheese. Nowadays, fondue comes in many forms — hot cheese, chocolate, oil and broth can all be used.

Here are eight Calgary restaurants that offer their own take on classic cheese or chocolate fondue.

If you're not a huge chocolate fan, Cleaver offers a great alternative to the typical dessert fondue. Instead of melted chocolate, you can dip marshmallows and a few different kinds of doughnuts into melted salted caramel.

Tucked away behind Bread & Circus and Una Takeaway, this tiny wine bar is worth seeking out — and not just because they serve three different kinds of cheese fondue. Frenchie Wine Bar's fondue options include one served with cheese, black pepper, honey and truffle oil, another served with pecorino romano cheese and black pepper, and a third served with crumbled blue cheese, red wine and macerated fig. You can choose between pieces of gluten-free brioche or a classic baguette for dipping. If possible, try to stop by on a Wednesday or Sunday night to get your fondue for half price.

On cold nights, The Living Room offers a cozy spot to hunker down with a pot of warm, melted cheese. Bring a friend or your significant other to share the cheese fondue here, which features aged white cheddar cheese and truffle oil. Brussels sprouts, carrots and baguette come with it for dipping. If you want to make this dish a bit more substantial with more dipping options, you can also also add beef, chicken thighs or prawns for an additional $12.

This may be a steakhouse, but that doesn't mean you can't start your meaty meal off with some melted cheese. Modern Steak's truffle cheese fondue features two kinds of cheese, emmentaler and gruyere, along with herbs and white truffle oil. Dip your baguette into the cheesy goodness for the perfect start to your dinner at this Kensington restaurant.

At Monki Bistro, sweet, chocolate fondue isn't just for dinner or dessert — it's also the perfect brunch option. During brunch, you can choose from four Lindt chocolate flavours — dark, green matcha, yellow turmeric or organic Earl Grey leaf — to dip waffle crisps, pieces of brioche and fruit into. All of these chocolate flavours are still available in the evening, along with white, charcoal and pink beet root chocolate. If you can't choose between the various chocolate dips, don't worry — fondue sampler platters let you try three of the dips at once.

Located below Brasserie Kensington, Winebar Kensington keeps things simple yet delicious with a truffle cheese fondue served with toasted baguette. Ask your server to recommend one of the restaurant's more than 100 different bottles of wine to accompany it. When you've polished off the fondue, you can enjoy some more cheese in another form by creating your cheese and charcuterie board (there are around a dozen cheese options to choose from).

This Bavarian restaurant and bar in Mission has impressive specials every day of the week. But if it's fondue you're craving, Thursdays are your night to visit. Wurst serves cheese and chocolate fondue starting at 5 p.m. for Thursday Fondue Night. On the savoury side, you can order a three-cheese fondue that comes with sourdough bread, apples, asparagus spears, confit fingerling potatoes, cauliflower and Peppadew sweet piquanté peppers for dipping. The sweet fondue features Belgian chocolate and comes with fruits like strawberries, pineapple, blueberries and dried apricots, banana bread and marshmallows. If those six dipping options aren't enough, you can add additional foods such as pretzels, salami or almond biscotti for an additional cost. Bottles of wine are also available for half price on Thursdays.